Needs
by psychadelic
Summary: Maybe she doesnt need courage or confidence... maybe all she needs is her best friend. Harm Mac


**Disclaimer:** Unfortunately I do not own anything.

**A/N:** My first attempt at a JAG fic. Have written a few for NCIS. Hope you guys enjoy. Read and review. Not betaed so all mistakes belong to me.

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Needs

The week had come and gone by in a flash, making one Sarah Mackenzie feel like she was on a speeding train, with everything passing her by in a blur and no destination in sight. She felt like she was heading for disaster and there was no one who could help her stop herself from heading in that precarious direction. It was for this reason, and this reason only that she had accepted the dinner invitation extended to her by Gregory Vukovic. She had hoped that it would take her mind off the despaired situation she was in and hopefully brought a little bit of excitement into her now extremely boring life.

She had chosen a red dress that stopped just above her knees and was held up by two straps on her shoulders. It was not something you would normally have seen her in, but she had decided to throw caution to the wind and picked out this dress, knowing she looked good in it. She needed to boost her confidence, her courage and her mood, with all of them leaving her at the times she needed them the most. She wondered what had happened to her in the last couple of years. She was a marine, there was nothing she was afraid of, or she couldn't face, yet here she was looking for something to help her get through the evening.

She had shown up at Vukovic's apartment at precisely 20H00 that evening, without her confidence and courage. When she arrived there, however she was surprised to see that the rest of the team was already there. Bud and Harriet as well as General Cresswell and Sturgis were socializing, drinking and talking above the loud music. She felt relieved for some reason knowing that this was not a formal date as Vukovic had been trying, with immense difficulty, to get her to go out on a date with him.

"Colonel Mackenzie" Harriet shouted as soon as she saw the brunette marine standing in the doorway. Mac smiled in acknowledgement and headed in Harriet's direction. "Hey I was scared you changed your mind and decided not to come," the blonde haired woman said and Mac looked at her in a confused manner. "It's just I know how Greg has been pestering you to go out with him and I know…" Well I'm here so you can see I haven't changed my mind," Mac cut her off before anyone else heard their conversation.

The drinks flowed freely, conversation was light and non-political or work related and the evening was progressing smoothly, yet there was a nagging feeling at the back of Mac's mind. She could not place her finger on it, but it seemed to overwhelm every other thought that even tried to enter her mind. "Has anyone heard from Commander Rabb?" she heard the question being voiced and waited eagerly for an answer. Harm had been stationed away from JAG HQ for a while and in the beginning, he had stayed in contact with her, but as the time passed, it was becoming increasingly difficult to do so and eventually their friendship had disintegrated to the point where they were not even talking.

"I am not going to let the thought of him upset my evening," she thought to herself. She had come here to cheer up and she would be damned of she let a man keep her from having fun, even if he was her best friend and he was being a jerk at the moment. Her gaze had unconsciously settled on the young lawyer and as she looked at him, she was reminded of how similar he was to Harm.

They were both young, go-getters, always trying new things, not afraid of anything and ready to try everything. They were cocky, charming and devastatingly good-looking, although Harm had aged much in the time she had known him, still he was in good shape for his age. Greg caught her glance and when she did not drop her gaze, he walked up to her, hoping to get an idea of just what was going through her mind.

"Something on your mind Colonel Mackenzie?" he asked her, retaining her title so that she knew this was not a ploy of his to get her to go out with him. "No," she replied, "I just got a bit caught up in my own head." "You seem to like the wine," he joked and pointed to the three quarters empty wine bottle next to her. "It's good," she confirmed, as she stood up and made her way somewhat unsteadily to the balcony and freedom from the claustrophobic living room.

The cool breeze on her face was welcoming and she felt a bit relaxed as she breathed in the fresh air, though it didn't help in putting the uneasy feeling in her mind to a rest. Greg was right behind her, she could feel his breath cascading down the back of her neck and she was uneasy with it. She knew he would never try anything with her and even if he did, she would be able to kick his six, though not in this slightly drunken state. Still she wanted him to be standing where she could see him and she had a view of whatever he was going to do.

"Dance with me," he whispered in her ear. There was nothing to it, all he wanted was one dance, hoping she would accept his invitation and he could help work some of the alcohol out of her system. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea." "Please Sarah," his use of her first name made her aware of just how much he wanted this and even though she usually did not say no to friends, she just could not let this happen. It was wrong for too many reasons, but the most important being that she would imagine that he was Harm and that would not be fair on either of them.

He was about to say something else when he heard General Cresswell call him back inside the house. "I'll be right back," he assured her and stepped away into the living room. She was joined again ten minutes later and she assumed it was Greg. She knew she had to tell him that it was simply not going to work between them and she did not want to give him the idea that there was a relationship potential for them.

Without turning around to face who ever was behind her she started her dialogue, "Greg I know that you hope there can be something between us but I have to tell you that I am not interested in anything except friendship from you. I do not want to lead you on and let you think that something can grow from the current relationship we have. You're young, good-looking, hard-working and successful so there will be many girls willing to go out with you but I am not one of them. The reason for this is because I am in love with someone else and it just would not be fair for me to be with you and pretend that you're that someone else," she finished.

He stepped up closer to her and placed his hands on her waist, pulling her close to him. "Mac," he started and her heart skipped a beat or three. It could not be him, no she was dreaming, Harm was out of town and besides he did not even know that she would be here at Vukovic's house. She fell back into him and she knew then as she felt his body that it was definitely him, she would be able to distinguish his perfume anywhere and she took in deep breaths hoping he would fill her senses with just his smell.

He spun her around to face him and she saw the tired expression on his face. "I'm sorry, I've been a jerk lately and I'm here to make up for it," he smiled and her heart melted at once. There was just no way she could stay angry with him when he smiled at her like that. His eyes flashed with mischief and she knew something else was about to follow. "I'm glad you admitted it," she replied.

"Now that I've got that out of the way, can I get a proper greeting?" he asked her, a serious expression on his face but a sparkle in his eye. "What do you mean?" she was baffled. With that he lowered his head to hers and his lips met hers in a soft, sensational dance, which seemed like it would never end. "Maybe I didn't need courage and confidence at all, maybe all I needed was my best friend back," she smiled to herself.

The rest of the team stood speechless, looking at their teammates kissing on the balcony. It was Vukovic who brought them out of their stupor by walking up to the sliding door leading to the balcony and sliding it shut, giving the two the privacy they needed.

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So that was my first attempt. 

leave a thought behind and maybe the second attempt will turn out better.

thanks

me


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